Method or process of smelting zinc.



I. PARTANEN.

METHOD 0R PROCESS OF S'MELTING zmc.

APPLICATION FILED FEB. 2. I916.

Patented Jan 22,1918.

E E D Y T o I: R H T m C E R L G B INVENTOH S E S S E N W W ATTORNEY ISAK PAJRTANEN, 0F TELLURIJDE, COLORADO.

METHOD 0R PROCESS OF SMEL'IIN G ZINE).

Specification ofLetters Patent.

Patented Jan. 22, IQI.

Application filed February 2, 1916. Serial Ito. 75,723.

To all whom it may concern."

Be it known that I, ISAK PARTANEN, a subject of the Emperor of Russia, having declared my intention of becoming a citizen of the United States, residing at Telluride, in the county of San Miguel and State of Colorado, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Methods or Processes of Smelting Zinc, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to a method or process of separating pure metallic zinc from its ores and, more particularly speaking has reference to the electrolytical treatment of the so-called blue powder which consists essentially of metallic zinc commingled with zinc oxid.

Therefore, one object of the present invention resides in devising a method or process by means of which zinc may be smelted in an electric furnace and which eliminates the main difficulty heretofore attendant upon processes of this class wherein the zinc is va orized in the furnace and upon being con ensed the greater proportion of it can only be recovered in a finely divided or pulverulent form technically known as blue powder and which consists essentially of metallic zinc and zinc oxid.

Therefore, since the treatment of the complex ores of zinc to the point where the zinc is obtained in a blue powder form is well own and is easily carried on in a practical manner, this invention has for another object, the treatment of the blue powder in subsequent commercial steps to obtain, by a Slhgle process, the pure marketable metallic ZlIlC.

With the above and other objects in View, will now proceed to describe the present method or process in connection with the apparatus illustrated in the accompanying rawing wherein:

The apparatus illustrated in the single figure of the drawing is typical of one of many devices which may be constructed for practising the present invention.

In detail:

The apparatus, as herein illustrated, comprises a furnace A preferably of fire brick and having a bottom 1, side walls 2 which may be covered on the interior with fire clay or other refractory material, and a dome shaped top 3. In one side a door opening 4 is provided which is normally closed by a door 5. The bottom 1 of the furnace is formed similar to the side walls 2 and is provided with an iron plate 7 on the interior surface thereof for purposes to be hereinafter described. Also, projecting through an aperture in the dome shaped top 3-of the furnace is a tubular member 8, preferably of graphite, and the outer end of which connects, as shown, ing to the bottom of a receiver 10 from the top of which into the reaction zone of the furnace A. Beneath the bottom 7 of the furnace is located a heating element'l2 which may be in the form of a blast burner if desired and is adapted to raise the temperature of the interior of the furnace to 500 or 600 C. if desired. A wire 13 connects the positive pole of a battery or current source B with the graphite tubular member 8 through the agency of the binding post 6011 said member thus forming one electrode of the furnace, whereas a similar wire 14 connects the iron plate 7 with the negative pole of the battery or current source B thus forming the other electrode of the furnace A.

The blue powder obtained from the complex ores and perhaps containing moisture is placed within the furnace A and a supply of free or nascent chlorin passed in intimate contact therewith. Thus the free zinc and zinc oxid react with the chlorin to form zinc chlorid and following reactions occurring:

The electric current is then started and the furnace A is heated, either by the electric current passing through the resistance bath of zinc chlorid and zinc hypochlorite, or by the heating element 12 or by both to a temperature of from 500 to 600 C. in order to keep any metallic zinc present and the :hlorid and hypochlorite in a liquid condiion.

The action of the current decomposes or breaks down the zinc chlorid and zinc hypochlorite since electrolytid decomposition takes place due to the fact that the graphite member 8 forms an anode and the iron plate 7 forms a cathode. The result is that the anions, which in this instance are free or nascent chlorin, pass out through the tubular member at the top of the furnace and the cations, which in this instance are pure metallic zinc, collect at the cathode.

a gas conduit 11 leads backzinc hypochlorite, the

with a gas conduit 9 lead-- ZnCl -l-electric current -Zn+2Cl. Zn (0C1) }electric current=Zn+2OCL The (OCl) radical is unstable under the conditions prevailing in the furnace and breaks down or decomposes into free chlorin and oxygen, the latter element combining to a great extent with the carbon or graphite of the anode and thus producing an oxid of carbon having no effect on the continuation of the electrolysis taking place within the furnace and having no effect on the reactions by which the zinc chlorid and zinc hypochlorite are formed.

It is to be noted that a necessary step in the process is to fuse the zinc chlorid and hypochlorite at a temperature of 500 to 600 C.

Instead of pursuing the above method or process, specifically the blue powder may, if desired, be briqueted with a suitable binding material and used for the anode in an electrolytic cell, in which case the cathode will be an iron plate and upon the start of the electric current the electrolysis of the zinc will take place and electrolytic deposition of the zinc on the cathode will be the result. Thus pure zinc in a commercial form is likewise obtained. Also the blue powder, briquet'ed or otherwise, may be directly used in electroplating iron. The molten metal in whichever method is employed, may be removed through an opening in the side wall of the furnace closed by a plug 15.

While, in the foregoing, I have outlined specific steps of the process or method hereinbefore described, it is nevertheless to be understood that in practice, such practical variations may be resorted to as fall within the scope of the invention as defined in the appended claims.

I claim:

1. The method of electrolytically smelting zinc, which consists in chloridizing blue powder with chlorin, fusing the zinc chlorid and hypochlorite thus produced, and then electrolyzing the said zinc chlorid and hypochlorite to separate the pure metal.

2. The method of electrolytically smelting zinc, which consists in chloridizing blue powder with chlorin in the presence of moisture, fusing the zinc chlorid and hypochlorite thus produced, and then electrolyzingthe same to separate the pure metal.

3. The method of electrolytically smelting zinc which consists in chloridizing the blue powder with chlorin in the presence of moisture, fusing the zinc chlorid and hypochlorite thus produced to free pure metal and nascent chlorin, withdrawing the pure metal and chlorin replenishing the supply of blue powder, and then reintroducing the nascent chlorin previously freed.

In testimony whereof I aiiix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

' ISAK PARTANEN. Witnesses: ISAAC NENALA,

JACOB WmsULA. 

